This is one of my favorite loaf cake recipes. So simple and delicious, made with homemade applesauce. The cranberries give it an additional holiday flair.

Karin’s Homemade Applesauce
This amount makes about 6-8 cups of applesauce. I freeze it 2 cups at a time so I always have homemade applesauce when we need it.

• 3 kilos of mixed apples – they can be ugly or windfall apples
• juice from 1-2 freshly squeezed oranges
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 star anise
• 3 cloves
• 1 tsp fresh ground nutmeg
• 1 pinch of salt
• several grinds of fresh pepper

Wash, peel, core and roughly dice the apples into a large pot.
Add the orange juice and spices. Stir.
Bring to a boil stirring frequently so the apples don’t stick or burn.
Reduce heat to a simmer – and simmer on very low heat for 20-30 minutes depending on the apples. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking.
You should have soft applesauce with small chunks still in it.
If you like your applesauce smoother you can puree it.
I usually then let it sit in the pot with the spices overnight in a cool and then remove the spices before using. This lets the spices better seep into the applesauce.
I do not use sugar – if the applesauce is too sour for you, you can add sugar to your liking.

Applesauce Cake with Pecans and Fresh Cranberries
Adapted from the Fanny Farmer Cookbook

Ingredients for 2 loaves:

• ½ cup / 115 grams of butter or baking margarine
• 1 cup / 200 grams of sugar
• 2 cups / 226 grams of applesauce (homemade – if using store bought very thin applesauce reduce to 1 ¼ cup / 140 grams)
• 2 eggs
• 2 cups / 280 grams of flour
• 1 ½ tsp of backing soda
• ½ tsp of salt
• 2 tsps of cinnamon
• ½ tsp ground nutmeg
• ½ cup / 60 grams of fresh, washed cranberries – can be substituted by raisins or dried cranberries if you prefer
• ½ cup / 60 grams of roughly chopped pecans

Putting it all together:

Preheat the oven to 350° F / 190° C. Butter and lightly flour 2 bread loaf pans and set aside.

Mix together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg in a bowl.
In another bowl cream the butter or margarine, add the sugar gradually, beating until well mixed.

Add the applesauce and blend. Beat in the eggs and mix thoroughly.
Now add the flour mixture, use in wire whisk to incorporate and don’t over-mix. Stir in the cranberries (or raisins) and nuts.

Fill into the loaf pans and bake for 35-40 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. You may need an extra 5-10 mixture depending on how liquid your applesauce is.

Cool in the pans for 5-10 minutes, then turn out onto a rack to cool completely.

You can frost or glaze these with a frosting/glaze of your choice. We eat them unfrosted or glazed.